“The power of porn may not just be its explicit content. It may also be its capacity to take the viewer into another world. Porn is a place where bodies and people are perfect, where imaginary lovers comply with every wish, and where the scene created perfectly matches the deepest desires of the viewer. It’s a perfect and perfectly destructive world, and it’s the stuff both horror and heartbreak are made of.” –Joe Dallas
Similar to a kaleidoscope, pornography can fascinate or intrigue us. Unlike a kaleidoscope, however, the endless variety of “patterns” we see in porn can engulf us to the point we are bound. If this is how you feel, please consider the following 40 tips to quit porn and gain freedom:
- Do research on porn’s harmful effects to your brain, body, and relationships.
- Understand it is a violation of another’s privacy to be a peeping tom (regardless of the porn performer’s perceived willingness to be consumed).
- Saturate your mind with the word of God daily and memorize Scripture.
- Downgrade to a basic cell phone with no internet. I have done this for years now.
- Fear God and take His call to obedience seriously.
- Cancel your cable subscription, magazine subscriptions, and opt out of any emails that entice you.
- Spend time in nature every day. It will increase your awareness of God’s majesty and will serve as a healthy coping mechanism that feeds the soul.
- Set up structure for every aspect of your life to prevent idle time and help curb feelings of insecurity.
- Set weekly, monthly, and yearly goals to guide your focus and give you purpose to aim for.
- Keep in mind that sex is not a “spectator sport.” –David Hubbard
- Deactivate each of your social media accounts to starve lust, comparison, and envy, which are some of the reasons we use porn in the first place.
- Set a reading challenge for yourself and fill your mind with edifying, growth-producing content.
- Be willing to part ways with most forms of secular entertainment. The only way to uproot sin from our lives is to take drastic measures.
- Focus on day-by-day recovery instead of the end result.
- Pursue Christ wholeheartedly, with reckless abandonment–He can change the human heart.
- Regularly do a personal inventory of your life and where it is headed (here’s a list I wrote that can assist with this).
- Deal with past hurts and losses, which are a breeding ground for addiction if not processed and worked through.
- Find your identity and purpose in Christ alone. The contrary may lead to proving yourself in godless and self-focused ways.
- Always have something fun to look forward to, even if it is free.
- Learn new skills, hone a craft, develop healthy habits and hobbies.
- Rid your life and space of anything that isn’t useful, beautiful, or sentimental. This will serve to remove items that you consciously or subconsciously associate with pornography.
- Read the two-part article, “What Your Sexual Fantasies (Might) Say About You.”
- Stop consumption of other vices that feed your desire for porn.
- Better ensure a clear mind through adequate sleep and a bedtime.
- Exercise–from my experience, walking several miles a day can naturally release some of the pent-up tension.
- Stop all contact with anyone who is toxic and unhealthy–the stress can lead to needing sexual release in order to cope.
- Find constructive outlets to channel your creative (and sexual) energy.
- Be intentional about forming healthy friendships and relationships with those who will keep you accountable and build you up.
- Learn to set boundaries–a lack of them may increase your desire for control, leading to the imagined security of control through fantasy.
- Fear not the opinion of man, which is unstable, changing, and often inaccurate, as it can take over your life.
- Formulate an escape route for times of temptation.
- Develop an honorable thought life (Philippians 4:8).
- Do not go without food, water, or rest, which are basic needs and common triggers.
- Fast for a set amount of time (freshly made juice only) and pray diligently during this time.
- Budget your time, just like you (hopefully) budget your money. As one person has said, “A budget is telling your money [or time] where to go instead of wondering where it went.”
- Be willing to be uncomfortable or even embarrassed by seeking professional help–the results will be worth the pain, time, effort, and money.
- Replace the time you’d usually watch porn with listening to podcasts, sermons, lectures, or audio books.
- Learn to ignore your feelings, despite however strong. Temptation is not a license to sin.
- Refuse to keep secrets or dwell on shame, being transparent with the right people sets you on the path for healing and recovery.
- Trust the Lord with your past, present, and future. If this step is forgotten, a host of issues will commence.
Now that we’ve considered 40 tips to quit porn and get free, is the time and effort needed in order to overcome this monstrous habit worth the cost to you? Do you actually want to heal? If so, I bet that you are willing to do whatever it takes to rid your life of this poison. If not, no amount of advice will help you.
“Your life begins to change the day you take responsibility for it.” –Unknown
To learn more about what it takes to quit porn, check out these additional resources:
- How to Quit Porn–6 Essential Steps
- Why Can’t I Stop Watching Porn? 3 Reasons It’s Hard to Quit
- Am I Addicted to Porn? 6 Symptoms of Porn Addiction
REALLY helpful, practical ideas – thank you for these…! :D
This great Emma, Gods blessings..